Let the earth help us to save the earth, was the motto of Olaf Schuiling, who was professor of geochemistry and experimental petrology at Utrecht University from 1972 until his retirement in 1997. How does nature manage itself? Can we imitate that? That attitude was the breeding ground for revolutionary solutions.
His best-known plan is the use of olivine in the fight against climate change. This most common mineral on earth has the special property that when weathering it releases CO2 captured from the air. Crush it and scatter it liberally on fields, beaches, roofs and roads all over the world, was his message.
‘A fascinating freethinker, completely original. No idea was too much for him, no sea was too high for him’, says science journalist Simon Rozendaal. ‘With olivine Schuiling has become known worldwide.’ Olivine is already being used on a small scale. The company GreenSand has processed the mineral in products such as potting soil, garden soil, filling sand for paving and infill sand for sports fields. Along the Hoekse Lijn, the metro line between Schiedam and Hoek van Holland, there is a path of ground olivine. Until old age, this wonderful and inspiring man has worked to save the world with stones, greenSand reported on his site after Schuiling’s death.
Contest by Al Gore and Richard Branson
For a moment Schuiling seemed to make a big difference when Al Gore and Richard Branson launched a competition for plans to combat climate change. $25 million was the top prize, 2,600 plans were submitted. Schuilings olivine made it to the top ten, then it became quiet, the prize was never awarded.
Rozendaal attributes the fact that it has not been applied on a large scale to the high costs – an immense amount of olivine is needed – and to unpleasant environmental effects. ‘Throwing large quantities on the beach, Milieudefensie won’t be ready for that anytime soon.’
Schuiling was a classical professor who, with his beard and wild eyebrows, also looked like a classical scholar. ‘And then he was also a bit absent-minded’, says his son Arjan. His curiosity was boundless. He once had pure CO2 breathed in, it was only once, his throat seared.
Another sensational plan by Schuiling was to raise the coastal area by injecting sulfuric acid into calcareous soils, so that the Netherlands would be better protected against the advancing waters. The reaction between the acid and the lime creates gypsum, which would push the soil up. Rozendaal: ‘It wasn’t just theory, he also tried it out. In his office he dripped sulfuric acid into a piece of marl from the Sint Pietersberg every day, and that grew into a plaster tree.’
Beloved teacher
Schuiling was also a popular teacher, as witnessed by the reactions of students. He went with them to the Cyclades in Greece and the Massif Central in France for fieldwork. ‘What a nice, travel-loving and knowledgeable teacher he was. He was passionate about explaining how geochemical cycles work and let us loose on the elements to learn to investigate for ourselves,” one wrote to the family. “A loss of ‘silver capital’ for the earth sciences,” wrote another.
In recent years Schuiling, who suffered from dementia, lived in a nursing home, where he died on Sunday 19 December at the age of 89. He leaves five children from two marriages. Nature was his great love. Walks, climb mountains, look for mushrooms, he knew everything that is edible in nature. Shelter, in its own style, is buried in a mycelial box (made of fungi) that decomposes in the ground. An olivine trail strewn by friends led to his final resting place.